Walcheske & Luzi’s Guide to Workplace Discrimination Laws
In today’s world, understanding workplace discrimination laws is essential for employees. We make it our business at Walcheske & Luzi to help our clients stand up to job discrimination by educating them about what constitutes unfair treatment at work. Our employment discrimination attorneys are also here to teach you about relevant workplace discrimination laws and can help evaluate your situation to determine if you have a case.
What is Workplace Discrimination?
The U.S. Equal Employment Commission defines workplace discrimination as treating someone differently, or less favorably, for some reason. Workplace discrimination occurs when someone is being unfairly treated at work based on characteristics such as race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information. Discrimination can manifest in many ways, including through motivations behind hiring, firing, promotion, salary, and job assignments.
Key Federal Laws Addressing Working Discrimination
People thinking about filing a lawsuit against an employer for unfair treatment need to have a general understanding of the law as it relates to workplace discrimination. Here are some of the most important workplace discrimination relevant laws you should be familiar with:
- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964: Title VII prohibits employers from discriminating against employees based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Title VII applies to employers with 15 or more employees, including federal, state, and local governments.
- The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA): The ADEA protects employees and job applicants 40 years or older from workplace discrimination based on age in hiring, promotion, discharge, compensation, or terms, conditions, and privileges of employment. The ADEA applies to employers with 20 or more employees.
- The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): The ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs. The ADA requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities, unless doing so would cause undue hardship.
- The Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA): The EPA mandates that men and women in the same workplace must be given equal pay for equal work. The jobs do not need to be identical, but they must be substantially equal. Pay differentials are permitted only when based on seniority, merit, quantity or quality of production.
- The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA): GINA prohibits discrimination based on genetic information in both employment and health insurance. Employers cannot use genetic information or testing in hiring, firing, job assignments, or promotions.
How to Identify Workplace Discrimination
Workplace discrimination is not always overt and can be challenging to identify. For example, an absence of diversity in the workplace, especially with higher ranking positions, can potentially indicate unfair hiring practices. Retaliation is also considered workplace discrimination. This refers to a situation where an employee faces negative consequences for filing a discrimination complaint or participating in a discrimination investigation. In these cases, having an experienced retaliation lawyer by your side advocating for your rights is crucial. Regardless of your situation, if you feel you may have been discriminated against, it never hurts to reach out to an employment lawyer for an objective, third-party consultation.
Steps to Take if You Believe You’re Experiencing Workplace Discrimination
There are things you can do to protect yourself against workplace discrimination. Make sure to keep detailed records of questionable incidents, including dates, times, places, and witnesses. You can also report the discriminatory behavior to your supervisor or human resources department. Many companies have policies and procedures for handling such complaints. Once you’re ready, consult with an employment discrimination lawyer.